This item is for Council to receive a statement from the Executive Mayor reflecting on the previous year and outlining his priorities for the year ahead.
The Leader of the largest group of which the Executive Mayor is not a Member will be invited to respond.
Minutes:
Mayor Jason Perry made his annual statement, outlining the instability experienced by the council in previous years, but that despite this the community had thrived. The Mayor stated that he had had the privilege to visit great community groups, businesses, and people who wanted to make Croydon successful. He thanked all of them for their welcome and willingness to move forward, and their optimism for the borough. The Mayor gave a simple message for people to get on board to fix the challenges facing the borough, starting by working with communities and Central Government, and the Improvement and Assurance Panel. The process of fixing the council’s finances had been a top priority this year. A difficult but achievable budget had been set, which included a £33m Council Tax support scheme and a £2m hardship fund. The Penn and Kroll reports had been referred to the police to investigate misconduct in public office, and residents could be assured those responsible for the council’s financial crash would be held accountable. The Mayor had introduced the Graffiti Removal Team; reintroduced Public Space Protection Orders; revoked the planning design document, SPD2; launched a review of the Local Plan; begun the process of delivering a community pool in Purley; begun to deliver the Housing Transformation plan; established a Mayoral Town Centre Advisory Board; secured good CQC ratings for the council’s extra care services; provided funding for activities during school holidays; established the ant-Violence Against Women and Girls strategy; and launched the London Borough of Culture, and had done all this by involving residents along the way.
The Mayor then pledged to continue fixing the finances, negotiating a support package from Central Government; improve the housing service and housing repairs contract; work to regenerate the town centre and increase meantime use of the empty units; remove graffiti; cut the grass, and develop a new robust waste contract. The Mayor expressed his desire to see Croydon returned to a vibrant, clean, thriving borough, and expressed his hope that everyone in the chamber would help to deliver a better future for residents and make Croydon a place people were proud to call home.
Councillor Stuart King, Leader of the Opposition, responded by firstly congratulating the Mayor on his first year in office, and stated that he had witnessed the commitment and determination to the role demonstrated by the Mayor. Increasingly more residents were turning to the council for help during the cost of living crisis; nonetheless the Mayor had made progress in a number of areas. In particular the progress that had been made with regards to the problems at the Regina Road estate and more widely in the council’s housing stock. The financial problem was a shared one, he said, requiring a shared solution, but it was a shame the council had not achieved more of a cross party consensus about facing those challenges. Councillor King urged members to ensure the Mayoral system flourished and succeeded because Croydon voted for it and its success would be the town’s success. Labour supported the revocation of SPD2 and welcomed the graffiti removal service and supported ending the Veolia contract. It was a shared objective to return the council to financial stability.